Six months later, Trudeau government still has no chief science adviser

“It is taking rather a long time,” said Scott Findlay, a biologist with the University of Ottawa and co-founder of the activist group Evidence for Democracy.

Duncan may be waiting for MPs to return for the fall session of Parliament, or she may not have found suitable candidates, said Findlay. Duncan’s office would not provide reasons for the delay.

“The process to recruit a chief science adviser is still underway and the minister is looking forward to welcoming the adviser once the process is complete,” wrote Michael Bhardwaj, Duncan’s director of communications, in an email.

Paul Dufour, an adjunct professor at the University of Ottawa who co-wrote a comparison of national science advisers last year, said the delay may relate to the political appointment process – which takes place within the Privy Council Office (PCO) and the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) – rather than the job hunt that took place under Duncan’s watch.

“It’s a political call down the road, right?” said Dufour, who was once interim executive director in a previous version of the advisory post that was shut down by the Conservative government in 2008.

“So these things sometimes take more time than people think they should. Frankly, I personally I don’t see what the big issue unless it’s caught up in something that’s got to do with the machinery of government.”

The Liberals promised to create the new advisory post during the 2015 election following reports of muzzled public scientists and anger over lackluster climate change policies. The promise remains short on the details that will determine how much power the new advisory position will wield.

The Liberals haven’t said where exactly in the bureaucracy the post will be established – although the public notice of the job search says the adviser “will report to the Prime Minister and the Minister of Science.”

That doesn’t necessarily mean the role will be placed inside PCO or PMO, said Dufour. It could still exist within Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), Minister Navdeep Bains’ department, he said.

This year’s federal budget earmarked $2 million for a secretariat to support the chief science adviser. Dufour said he’s heard a rumour that the secretariat will be housed within ISED.

“But I don’t know how they’re going to handle that because if the science adviser is in the Innovation, Science and Economic Development office, I don’t think that’s the ideal situation for that person,” he said.

“They won’t have the gravitas that you would have in PCO.”

Mehrdad Hariri, president and CEO of the Canadian Science Policy Centre, said colleagues in his field are eager to hear who will get the post, even if expectations may be a little high.

“The community is extremely excited and eager to learn who will be the so-called first chief science adviser,” said Hariri.